CE-PT.indd

Continuing Education (C.E.) Hour Requirements

In order to renew a license, a licensee shall be required to complete 40

hours of continuing education per prerenewal period. A prerenewal

period is 24 months preceding September 30 in the year of the renewal.

 At least 3 of the 40 hours must include content related to the ethical

practice of physical therapy.

 At least 1 of the 40 hours must include content related to the sexual

harassment prevention training CE.

 One C.E. hour shall equal 50 minutes.

 Courses that are part of the curriculum of a university, college, or

other educational institution shall be allotted C.E. credit at the rate

of 15 C.E. hours for each semester hour, or 10 C.E. hours for each

quarter hour of academic credit awarded.

 A renewal applicant shall not be required to comply with C.E.

requirements for the ﬁ rst renewal of an Illinois license.

 Physical therapists licensed in Illinois but residing in other states

shall comply with the C.E. requirements set forth in this Section.

Approved Continuing Education Programs

C.E. credit may be earned by veriﬁ ed attendance at or participation in

a program that is oﬀ ered by an approved continuing education sponsor.

Credit shall not be given for courses taken in Illinois from unapproved

sponsors. Approved sponsor shall mean:

A. American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) and its components,

including programs, courses and activities approved by the IPTA;

B. Federation of State Boards of Physical Therapy (FSBPT), including

programs, courses and activities approved through its ProCert

program;

C. Colleges, universities, or community colleges with accredited

physical therapy or physical therapy assistants education programs

for post-professional academic coursework, all accredited colleges

and universities would be approved sponsors; and

D. Any other person, ﬁ rm, association, corporation, or group that

has been approved and authorized by the Department upon the

recommendation of the Board to coordinate and present continuing

education courses or programs.

C.E. may also be earned from the following activities:

A. Teaching a course for an approved C.E. sponsor. An applicant

will receive 2 hours of credit for each C.E. hour awarded to course

attendees the ﬁ rst time the course is taught and 1 hour of credit

for each C.E. hour the second time the same course is taught; no

credit will be given for teaching the same course 3 or more times.

A maximum of 50% of the total C.E. requirements may be earned

through C.E. instruction. The applicant must be able to provide

veriﬁ

cation of unique content for each C.E. course taught via course

goals, objectives, and outline;

 DO NOT SUBMIT PROOF OF C.E. UNLESS SPECIFICALLY REQUESTED BY THE DEPARTMENT.

 YOU NEED NOT COMPLY WITH C.E. FOR THE FIRST RENEWAL OF LICENSE.

 YOU MAY ACCESS A COMPLETE COPY OF THE PHYSICAL THERAPY ADMINISTRATIVE RULES

(INCLUDING CONTINUING EDUCATION REQUIREMENTS) ON OUR WEB SITE AT IDFPR.illinois.gov

CONTINUING EDUCATION FACT SHEET

LICENSED PHYSICAL THERAPIST

CE-PT 09/20

B. American Board of Physical Therapy Specialties (ABPTS) Clinical

Specialist Certiﬁ cation. An applicant will receive 20 hours of C.E.

credit for the prerenewal period in which the initial certiﬁ cation is

awarded.

C. APTA-approved post-professional clinical residency or fellowship.

An applicant will receive 1 hour of C.E. credit for every 2 hours

spent in clinical residency, up to a maximum of 20 hours. Clinical

residency hours may not be used for C.E. credit if the applicant is

also seeking credit for hours earned for post-professional academic

coursework in the same prerenewal period.

D. Professional research/writing. An applicant may receive C.E. credit

for publication of scientiﬁ c papers, abstracts, or review articles

in peer-reviewed and other professional journals; publication of

textbook chapters; and poster presentations at conferences sponsored

by any entity that has pre-approved status, up to a maximum of

50% of the total C.E. requirements;

i) 15 hours for each refereed article.

ii) 3 hours for each non-refereed article, abstract of published

literature or book review.

iii) 5 hours for each textbook chapter.

iv) 5 hours for each poster, platform presentation or review article.

E. Self-study. A maximum of 50% of the total C.E. requirements may

be earned through the following self-study activities.

i) An applicant may obtain up to 20 hours of C.E. credit by taking

correspondence or web-based courses from an approved C.E.

sponsor. These courses shall include a test that must be passed

in order to obtain credit.

ii) An applicant can receive C.E. credit for utilizing moderated

teleconferences or audiocassettes/videos of professional

presentations oﬀ ered by approved sponsors. The applicant

will be responsible for verifying purchase/registration for

teleconferences or audio presentations.

iii) An applicant can receive C.E. credit for completion of published

tests/quizzes based on APTA publications. The applicant will

be responsible for verifying successful completion. (These

publications-based tests/quizzes, typically oﬀ ered for less than

1 hour of C.E. credit, are the only exception to the requirement

that all approved C.E. activities must be at least 1 hour.)

F. Journal clubs. Up to 5 hours of C.E. credit may be obtained for

participation in a journal club. Credit will be earned based on actual

hours of participation and must be veriﬁ ed with an attendance list

and list of articles from peer-reviewed journals discussed at each

meeting.

G Education programs at Illinois Physical Therapy Association (IPTA)

district meetings. Up to 5 hours of C.E. credit may be obtained for

attendance at these programs. Credit will be earned based on actual

hours of participation and must be veriﬁ ed with an attendance list

and referenced presentation materials.

CE-PT

H. Departmental inservices. Up to 5 hours of C.E. credit may be

obtained for attendance at inservices at healthcare facilities or

organizations. Credit will be earned based on actual hours of

participation and must be veriﬁ ed with an attendance list and

referenced presentation materials.

I. Up to 5 hours may be earned for completion of skills certiﬁ cation

courses. A maximum of 2 hours in cardiopulmonary resuscitation

certiﬁ ed by the American Red Cross, American Heart Association

or other qualiﬁ ed organization may be accepted, while a maximum

of 3 hours may be accepted for certiﬁ cation or recertiﬁ cation in

Basic Life Support (BLS), Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS),

or Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS) or their equivalent.

J. Clinical Instructor. Up to 5 hours of CE credit may be obtained

by being a clinical instructor for PTA students and up to 10 hours

of CE credit may be obtained ny being a clinical instructor for

PT students. Credit will be earned based on hours of cumulative

student clinical instruction, with 1 hour of CE credit per 120 student

hours. CE credit hours for clinical instruction will be awarded by

the student’s academic institution.

K. Virtual attendance at live professional presentations, provided the

participant is able to communicate in real time with the speaker

and other participants. This shall not be considered self-study.

C.E. will not be awarded for the following types of activities:

A. Entry-level physical therapy or physical therapist assistant academic

coursework.

B Employee orientation programs or training completed as a condition

of employment.

C. Professional meetings or conventions, other than educational

programming by approved sponsors.

D. Committee meetings.

E. Work experience.

F. Individual scholarship, mass media programs or self-study activities

not identiﬁ ed in subsection (E).

Continuing Education Earned in Other Jurisdictions

If a licensee has earned C.E. hours in another state not given by an

Illinois approved sponsor for which the licensee will be claiming credit

toward full compliance in Illinois, the applicant shall submit an individual

program approval request form, along with a $20 processing fee, within

90 days prior to expiration of the license. The Board shall review and

recommend approval or disapproval of the program. Applicants may seek

individual program approval prior to the participation in the program.

If a licensee fails to submit an out of state C.E. approval form within the

required time frame, late approval may be obtained by submitting the

approval request form with the $20 processing fee plus a $10 per hour

late fee not to exceed $150. The Board shall review and recommend

approval or disapproval of the program.

Certiﬁ cation of Compliance with

Continuing Education Requirements

1) Each renewal applicant shall certify, on the renewal application,

to full compliance with the C.E. requirements.

2) The Department may require additional evidence demonstrating

compliance with the C.E. requirements. It is the responsibility of

each renewal applicant to retain or otherwise produce evidence

of such compliance for a minimum of 5 years.

Procedures for Requesting a Waiver of the

Continuing Education Requirement

A request for a waiver of the Continuing Education requirement must

be based upon extreme hardship as described below:

A) Full-time service in the armed forces of the U.S. during a

substantial part of the prerenewal period;

B) An incapacitating illness documented by a statement from

a currently licensed physician;

C) A physical inability to travel to the sites of approved

programs documented by a currently licensed physician;

D) Any other similar extenuating circumstances.

Requests for a waiver of the Continuing Education requirement must

be submitted prior to the expiration date of your current license. To

request a C.E. waiver, you must submit the following to the Department:

- Completed renewal application along with the $60 renewal fee

(fees are non-refundable); and

- A statement setting forth the facts upon which the request for a

waiver is based; or

- A copy of military papers showing active duty, if the request

is based upon full-time service in the armed forces of the U.S.;

- A signed statement from your attending physician verifying

the illness, length of treatment and diagnosis, if the request is

based upon an incapacitating illness or a physical inability to

travel to the sites of approved programs.

How the Department Processes Your Continuing

Education Waiver Request if You Have Not

Completed Your Continuing Education

Requirements

The Department of Financial and Professional Regulation makes every

eﬀ ort to process your renewal in a timely fashion. The renewal process

is delayed when all of the questions on the application are not answered,

when supporting documentation is missing, the fee is incorrect or

missing, or your check is not signed.

If the Department determines your application, waiver request, and other

documentation are in proper order, a new license will be mailed to you.

THE ISSUANCE OF YOUR LICENSE AT THIS TIME SHOULD

NOT BE CONSIDERED AS AN INDICATION THAT YOUR

WAIVER REQUEST HAS BEEN APPROVED.

The Board will review your waiver request and then make a

recommendation to the Director.

If your request for waiver is approved, you will be notiﬁ ed in writing.

If your request for waiver is denied, you will receive written notiﬁ cation

of the denial and your license will be placed into a nondisciplinary

non-renewed status.

A waiver request will not be granted if you are no longer practicing

your profession.

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NOTE: If you are requesting a waiver of the Continuing Education requirement, you are not eligible to renew on the Internet.